On Wednesday, outgoing US President Donald Trump used his veto power to block the US defense budget, which had previously been passed by Congress with an overwhelming majority, allowing him to bypass the president's opposition.
Trump said in an official letter to Congress, "It is regrettable that this text of law does not include vital measures for national security," and "does not comply with my government's efforts to put America in the forefront in terms of national security and foreign policy," considering that this law constitutes "a gift to China and Russia." .
This rejection means returning the text to the House and Senate to re-vote on it, and if it is approved by an overwhelming majority, they will override the presidential veto, and if they confirm the results of their first vote, the law will become effective despite Trump's opposition, which will set a precedent in his presidential term.
US House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi said on Wednesday that the House will vote on December 28 to override Trump's veto power.
Pelosi added - in a statement - that Trump's veto is "an act of extreme recklessness that harms our soldiers and endangers US national security."
Nancy Pelosi says Trump's veto betrays "contempt" (French)
Article 230
This law proposal is separate from the plan to support the US economy, which Trump also looms as disrupting, on the condition that families get more sums.
The defense budget for 2021, approved by Congress two weeks ago, is worth $ 740.5 billion and includes a 3% salary increase for defense sector employees.
But Trump had threatened to use a veto because the text did not include the repeal of a law known as "Article 230", which protects the legal status of social networks that the president accuses of committing transgressions.
Trump also takes the Pentagon Funding Act as stipulating the renaming of military bases that honor the Confederate camp generals who championed slavery during the American Civil War.
It is noteworthy that Trump signed an executive order last May that limits the protections for social media companies - such as Twitter, Facebook and Google - on the content of their platforms, but he requested that it be canceled completely by Congress.
Since its passage in Congress in 1996, Article 230 of the US Communications Etiquette Act has been described as the cornerstone of the Internet.
The article states that the platforms on the Internet do not bear legal responsibility for what users post on their pages, and these companies are also granted immunity from any consequences for their in good faith deleting materials published on their platforms.